A Touch of Destiny
by SapphireCourt
Summary: On the eve of his 15th birthday Naruto, raised in a city of demons, must travel to Konaha to learn about himself and fulfill a destiny laid out before him. Far from anything familiar, will he be able to become the hero he always wanted to be? Later Naru/kiba
1. Chapter 1

A Touch of Destiny

"I wanna story."

"Ok." Tucking a leg underneath her, she sat on edge of her son's bed. When he was finally settled under the covers he smiled at her.

"I want one about Flash an' Little Fox."

"Hmm… How about the story of how they met?" Her son sighed dramatically.

"I know that one mummy. I wanna new one!" She thought for a moment and grinned. Why not that story?

"All right."

"Once there was a village. It was strong and powerful with many great warriors living there. These warriors had a special name. They were called Ninja. The strongest warrior of them all was their leader. But he was getting old. So he gathered all of his strongest warriors and from them chose who would lead the village when he was gone. The warrior he chose was a man named…"

"FLASH!" cried out her son. "An' he was called Flash 'cause he was really really fast!" She laughed and pushed him back down on to the bed.

"Yes smarty pants. Now are you going to listen? Flash was in love with a beautiful woman called Little Fox. She was pregnant with his baby and they were going to marry."

"This sounds boring" her son winged as he pulled his covers tighter around his chin.

"Years ago, when the village was still young, a man named Red Eyes lived there. He was a cruel and evil man. He had a great fight with the leader of the village. Then he disappeared. Nearly a hundred years later, he returned. He had a power that allowed him to control Demons. And with this power he controlled a powerful, evil Demon!"

"But Demons aren't bad!" cried her son again. "I know lots and lots." She smiled sadly.

"Yes. But this Demon is different to the ones in our city. He can't hold a human form. And he has so much anger in him. A Demon like him would destroy a city like this with out a thought. It's Demons like him that make people outside the city afraid of us. Because they believe we're all evil." He frowned for a moment, a little wrinkle appearing on his five year old brow.

"That's sad. You're not evil mummy. I love you."

She looked into his honest blue eyes. Children were so sincere with what they said. "I love you too. Now, this Demon took the form of a giant red fox with nine tails. All the warriors in the village gathered to fight this beast. But they were no match. It tore through their home like it was made of rice paper. It ignored their attacks like they were nothing more than ants. You see, it's impossible to kill a Demon like this one. You can only seal it away. During the attack, Little Fox had been killed."

"No!"

She stroked a soothing hand through his blond hair. It was getting a little long and he would need a trim soon. "But not before she had given birth to her baby. Flash, seeing no other way to fight this Demon, took his new born baby up to the top of the tallest building in the village. Using a very special seal he summoned the Great Shinigami. The Shinigami took the soul of the beast and sealed it away inside the new born baby. By doing this Flash had saved the village, but it had cost him his life. All the villagers and the warriors saw Flash as their hero. He had a huge funeral where everyone sung songs and cheered his memory."

"Was it bigger than Nina-sama's funeral?"

"Yes, much bigger."

"What happened to the baby?"

"Well, Little Fox and Flash were friends with a Demon, like the ones in our city. She knew that the villagers would probably not understand that the baby wasn't the evil beast; the beast was just locked up inside him. She didn't want her best friend's baby growing up in the village, where people would be angry and mean to him for something that wasn't his fault!"

"So what did she do mummy?"

A sad look crossed her face. "She helped deliver the baby as her best friend, Little Fox, died. She went with Flash up to the top of the building and watched as he summoned the Great Shinigami. And when the Shinigami was finished, and Flash fell to the floor dead, she grabbed the baby and ran. She took him back to her home and raised him as her own son. Time passed and he became a beautiful and strong warrior and did many great deeds and saved many people."

"What was his name?"

"Well, what do you want to call him?" A big grin split his face.

"Give him my name!" Nikki laughed.

"All right then. His name was Naruto."

Ten years later.

Twelve desks lay on their sides. Soggy textbooks were huddled in a pile. Lose papers were scattered about the floor. Water seeped slowly across the stone tiles.

The five culprits stood to attention in a line at the front of the outside classroom.

Gorou Tanaka paced slowly before his students. They were soaked from head to foot. He came to a stop before the shortest (and only girl) of the five. She raised her gaze to his and but dropped it quickly. He made an imposing form. Black skin, shaved head and red eyes. Slowly he turned his gaze on the other four.

"So, who wants to go first?" They all started at once.

"Well it wasn't really my fault..."

"...an' it was really hot! So we..."

"So if Akila hadn't been here..."

"Shut up Vega!"

"…said 'I wish I had a drink' and…"

This continued for a few more moments as he looked them over. Akila was the youngest. Her body was thin and she wore her long blue hair in the three customary braids of the Ra clan. Faint green patterns were beginning to emerge on her blue skin indicating she would be hitting full maturity soon. She was bearing her fangs at Vega, who was ignoring her.

Pale hands shoved deep into his jean pockets. Black eye-liner, black nail polish, spiked black hair. He was the oldest in the class. His purple clan seals were tattooed down his right arm. Next to him stood the twins, Josh and Levi Al-Fassi. They had matching brown hair and green eyes. Josh wore a dark blue Jinbei while Levi's was grey. Neither had their family marks yet.

They all quieted until the only sound that could be heard was the laughter at the end of the line. Apparently human at first glance, the blond boy was the shortest of his group. His blue eyes were crinkled with mirth as he lent on the pillar beside him for support. To a demon like Gorou, the three demonic whisker marks that decorated each cheek looked out of place.

"Care to share your thoughts with the rest of us, Naruto?

Naruto took a few composing breaths as he wiped his eyes with one hand, grin still plastered on his face. "It was me Tanaka-sensei. I flooded the class."

Gorou glared impassively. It wasn't uncommon for these five to be found at the root of any trouble that arose in the school. But it was unusual for Naruto to take all the blame.

"Just you, hmm?"

"Yes Tanaka-sensei. Me an' Vega."

"Oi!"

Ah, there it was. Naruto and Vega were thick as thieves. One would rarely be found without the other. Aside from that they were always trying to get each other in trouble.

"Well there's only one way to settle this, isn't there? You'll all have to stay until it's cleaned up." The chorus of moans were music to his ears. Gorou allowed himself a small smile as he strode away.

As soon as their sensei had rounded the corner, Vega was on Naruto. He forced the smaller boy into a head-lock and growled down at him. "The hell was that about?

Dropping me in with you! You…you…Skunk head!"

"Ooh big words Vega. What you gonna call him next? Butt-brain?" Akila grinned at them. "You two started it. Like, it's not even our fault!" She gestured to herself and the twins, who were doing their very best to not be involved in the argument. Everyone knew to stay clear of Akila and Vega when they started going at it.

Vega was about to retort when Naruto took his moment to escape by throwing them both sideways into a pillar. Naruto jumped back into a half crouch with fists raised, his trademark grin stretched across his face.

"Don't take your eyes off me Vega, you can't hold me down for long!" Vega stood, the fingers of his right hand slowly growing into claws.

"Oh, wanna bet?"

"Ahem?"

Everyone looked over to the twins. Levi stood nervously, worrying the edge of his Jinbei. Josh just looked annoyed. "Perhaps we could get on with the cleaning? Some of us would like to get out of here today." Naruto straightened up and brushed off some imaginary dust from his soaked sleeve.

"Of course Josh. Akila, would you mind?" He gestured to the water on the floor. Akila was of the Ra clan. And everybody knew that the Ra clan had an unusual affiliation to water. It was said that they were descendants of the original water sprites. It was rumored that the oldest and strongest of the clan could even control the water inside a person's body. Akila was only young, but she already had a strong grasp of her power. She had skipped a year up to Naruto's class. He'd liked her instantly. Who wouldn't want a friend who could make Ice lollies? Unfortunately Vega didn't think she was so great. But Naruto suspected it was more because she was a girl than anything else.

Akila stood in the center of the class. Her hands were outstretched in front and a frown creased her brow in concentration. She'd tried explaining what it was like to move water once. How it was annoying because it never stayed in one place. It always wanted to dart this way and that. Always wanting to change its shape. It wasn't like she could command it, more… encourage it. Ooh look at that! She would think. Wouldn't it be fun to go that way? Wouldn't it be different to be this shape? Or exciting to be over there? Slowly, the water started to slip out of the books and their clothes. It ran, drop by drop, over the stone floor till it was in the grass by the side of the class.

When Akila had finished the boys set about righting the desks and picking up the books. A leg had come off one of the desks, which they tried reattaching with gum.

Eventually they agreed to leave it and hope no one noticed.

A/N

So this is my first story! I've had it rattling around in my mind for a while now and feedback would be much appreciated. So please, let me know what you think! X

-SapphireCourt


	2. Chapter 2

A Touch of Destiny

It was getting towards evening when Naruto found himself walking home beside Vega. The two had lived opposite each other for six years. Naruto could remember when Vega had first moved to his street.

It had been early April and the sun had been particularly persistent in its efforts to fry the blond eight-year-old to a crisp. He'd been squatting under a slide, trying to steal some shade, when the other boy had walked into the park. He had been bigger than the other kids and his black hair stuck up at odd angles. They'd all avoided him at first and he had made no attempt to interact. The sun crawled across the sky and the light faded in to late afternoon. Parents came and called children inside until it was just the two of them left. Naruto (quite board of squatting under the slide) had decided to make first contact. Vega had glared when he approached the swings.

"I'm Naruto."

Silence.

"I haven't seen you before. Do you live near?"

Nothing.

"You have stupid hair."

That drew a grin from the kid. "Look who's talking? Cracker-head."

"Oi!"

From that day they'd been fast friends. As it happened, Vega's dad had recently died. He and his Mum had been forced to move in with his grumpy Grandpa. Kawa Delta was very old and enjoyed bossing people around. Naruto couldn't count the times he'd stuck his wrinkly old head out the window and yelled at him to 'Go fetch him some rice!' or 'Come carry these buckets!' His sole objective, so it seemed, was to have Vega marry into the main clan branch. A difficult task at best, considering the only eligible member was currently seven.

"And I swear man, he just won't quit it! He said, right, 'Amaya-chan is only seven, but if we get in there quick! Arranged marriages always work out best'. How the fuck would he know? Just 'cause he couldn't marry a main."

Naruto listened to his friend rant with half an ear. The days were starting to cool and the leaves were beginning to gain that tell-tale golden hue. Autumn was approaching and so was his birthday. But despite his excitement (he'd be turning fifteen), a feeling of foreboding had begun to collect in the air. "Mum's been acting weird."

Vega paused to throw him a look. "When is your mum not weird?"

He just shrugged. It was true. Naruto thought his mum was the best, but she could be a little… odd at times. Recently she'd taken to checking on him a lot. Always wanting to know where he was, what he was doing, making him eat with her as much as possible. She'd spend ages just looking at him when she thought he wouldn't notice, worrying a cloth between her hands. The other day a bird had landed on the porch. She'd gone stiff, watching it hop along the wood. And only relaxed when it had flown off again. It was as if she was waiting for something to happen. "I guess. But she seems really… on edge."

Vega lightly punched his shoulder. "Don't think too hard. You'll do yourself injury. I'll catch you later cracker-head." Naruto just smiled.

"Yeah, whatever."

…..

When Naruto entered the house, he was greeted by Rag. Rag was Nikki's 'sort-of-boyfriend'. He was a big guy. Practically made of muscle. His skin was tanned and his eyes were brown. He kept his hair tied back under a blue bandanna.

"Hey kid. Your mum made dango."

His eyes darted to the bowl in front of Rag. The sweet golden balls were glistening temptingly under their syrup. Nikki's dango were nothing to be scoffed at. No one could cook sweets better than her, something Naruto took great pleasure in telling people. He pulled a chair over to the kitchen counter next to Rag and grabbed two sticks. He studied Rag as he chewed.

It seemed that he was always over now, not that Naruto minded Rag being there. It was just…odd. Nikki had introduced them three years ago. He hadn't known how to react to the giant at first. It had been awkward and the blond avoided him for a week. That had all changed when Rag had finally cornered the boy and sat down for a heart to heart. They got on really well after that and Naruto enjoyed the 'man-time' they spent together. He'd only told Vega, but sometimes it was like having a dad.

Recently, Rag had been acting a little tense. Now he thought about it, it was since his mum had started acting weird…

"Is mum ok?"

"…Sure. Why wouldn't she be?"

Too slow. Naruto knew Rag well enough to know when he was hiding something. Rag was a Demon Bear. Full blooded too. And when Rag lied he would suck air between his fangs.

"Oh really?" said Naruto suspiciously.

Rag tapped one thick nail on the counter top and met Naruto with a level gaze.

"Really."

At that moment a loud cry echoed from the garden.

…..

Nikki wasn't even fifty years old, but she had seen some things to terrify. She had been born in a time of war. Quite literally in the midst of a battle. The old general, Oken-san, had often regaled her with stories of how, as a newborn, she'd been thrust into his arms by her warrior mother. Despite the sudden burden of having to protect an infant in the middle of war-time, Oken-san had done his best to care for her. He'd taught Nikki how to fight, how to defend herself. By her tenth birthday she could be found by his side on the battlefield, swinging her claws with the best of them.

Nikki's bloodline was unique. Other demons referred to them as 'the dark nightmares'. When she let her 'true self' show, her form was a tall, thin, humanoid creature. Her skin would be the deepest black and her claws were long thin knives. People avoided staring too long in to her eyes as it was believed that they would be driven insane. There was a legend that her bloodline had sprung from the nightmares of the gods themselves.

At ten Nikki had bathed in the blood of her enemies. At twelve she successfully slaughtered the last of the demon-hunting priests. And by the time her fifteenth birthday rolled around, she had helped to bring about a truce with warring demon clans and the surrounding human settlements.

It was safe to say that her deeds had, and at such a young age, earned her a place in the stories as a formidable warrior.

A fearless warrior.

So why was she rising at first light with a cold and sick feeling plaguing her? Why could she be found outside her sleeping son's room, worrying the edge of her shirt between her fingers? Her wild hair had began to look even more unkempt and her usually bright brown eyes dull with lack of sleep.

It had been no secret that Naruto was adopted. She'd made a point of being as honest and upfront as she could afford to be in that department. Naruto, as oblivious as he could be, would have noticed the differences between them sooner or later. His blond hair and fair skin compared with her brown hair and olive complexion. Alongside 'other' things…

Naruto had been a sickly child. The demonic yoki pulsing through his core had often left his human body fatigued with the effort of keeping it contained. Nikki had spent night after night sat by his bedside, stroking damp blond locks and singing lullabies. He probably would have died had she not had help weaving the demonic yoki through his chakra pathways.

Once Naruto had come home, hands red raw and bleeding. The children at school had been showing off and manifesting their yoki for others to see. When Naruto had tried it, his yoki had burned his skin. He'd tried not to cry as Nikki had rubbed soothing balm into his hands. He'd sobbed to her, "But mummy if you're a demon, why aren't I?" She'd pulled him to her and rubbed circles on his back. What could she say? "Oh honey, you're just…different. You're not a demon. But you're not a human. You're special. You're the bridge between us." She'd pulled back and looked him straight in the eyes. "There's a touch of destiny about you." He hadn't understood what she'd said, she could tell. But 'a touch of destiny'. He'd liked that. It meant that he, Naruto, was important. There was a path for him and him alone. And if he could just find it all the people, Demons and Humans, who looked down on him for being different, for not quite being 'one of them' would have to respect him.

He'd returned home the next day sporting a beautiful black eye for his new attitude. But happy none the less.

Nikki was happy for him too. Happy that he'd kept that dream there was something more out there for him.

Lately though, dreams of her own had been plaguing her sleep. She'd wake in the night to Rag's worried face inches from her own. Her voice would be horse from crying and Rag would gather her up in his arms until words came back. It was a bird she feared. A black bird, no bigger than a robin. Ebony wings flecked with gold at the tips.

A small, beautiful bird that would arrive in the weeks leading up to Naruto's fifteenth birthday.

There was a small clink of china as a cup was set down. Nikki looked up at her drinking partner.

The years hadn't been kind to Okken. He'd been considered old when Nikki had been born, and fifty years had done little to help. His wide brow, heavy-set stature and prominent horns marked him as a Bull Demon. And whilst his body had began to fail him, his wide brown eyes showed that his mind was as strong as ever. He reached his weathered hand for the teapot and motioned for her to pass her

cup. She placed her palm over the top. "No, Okken-san, no tea for me today." He smiled at that and pushed her hand away. "No, now is not the time for tea." The liquid poured cloudy white from the spout.

"Now, tell me the truth. You look shit."

Nikki took a tentative sip of the rice wine. "A bad omen is coming to steal my son away to his destiny."

Okken sat quietly for a moment, sipping his wine. His hand trembled slightly. Nikki pretended not to notice. There had been a time when they were equals in strength and skill. By her twelfth birthday, it was evident that that time had passed. "You knew the omen would come?"

"Yes."

"You know his destiny?"

"Part of it, yes."

"And you prepared him, yes?"

Nikki looked down at her cup. "I... I've tried. I mean, my son is..."

"He was never yours to keep."

She looked up sharply at that. His steady gaze met hers. "I know well enough, to love a child, to raise them as your own blood." Okken let out a long sigh and made to re-fill their cups. "To release them to destiny, to battle." He set down the teapot and grasped at her hand. His fingers were long and thick, his palm wide. They engulfed her smaller hand. His skin was a rich brown, warn like old leather. One of his horns had a deep crack running through it. "At first, just paying a debt to an old

friend. Then, paying a debt to your own heart." his thumb stroked the back of her hand. "Destiny, she protects those she touches. Till they meet. Naruto was never yours to keep, as you were never mine." Okken sat back and took a sip of his wine.

"I came back."

He let out a laugh, "Yes. You come back. And now you steal my good wine."

Nikki picked up her cup and downed it in one. She slammed it upside down on the table. "What can I say, Okken-san? You have good taste."


End file.
